Soldier Baby
by GauronxSousuke
Summary: Due to complicated circumstances, Mao dumps a baby on Sousuke and orders him to take care of it for a week. Things get even more complicated when Gauron hears that "Sousuke has a baby." Why is caring for a baby so hard? And why is Gauron so angry?  GxS
1. Soldier Meets Baby

_AN: Starting from chapter 2, this story has slash, meaning it contains some GauronxSousuke one-sided shounen ai. __If you don't like slash, there's a very high chance you will not like this story! I also apologize if anyone finds mistakes having to do with the baby's behavior or how to care for them - I don't really know much about it besides the absolute basics, so if I made a mistake, please let me know! Also, big thanks to Ubikono for helping me so much with ideas and inspiration for this fic!  
_

Sousuke was at a complete loss. The shrill sound of screaming and wailing filled his ears, and it looked as though his apartment had been nuked. This was a terrifying predicament he was in. What he felt right now was much akin to the hopeless feeling of being cornered on the battlefield.

No, this was probably worse.

Only now did Sousuke fully understand why Mao looked so eager and desperate when she stopped by his apartment yesterday. But no matter what sort of foreboding feeling he had when she revealed her request, there was no way he could have refused an order from his superior. Especially knowing her temper. He was trapped, and doomed to follow through with the task that had been given to him.

Sousuke sighed and turned to look at the subject of his mission, who was currently defecating on the carpet. Baby Moesuke, red faced and clearly upset, was screaming and kicking, while grabbing at anything his little hands could reach. He made a mess on the floor, evidently having no control over his bodily functions. In a situation such as this, Sousuke was supposed to utilize a special garment called a "diaper" after cleaning the area of the body that was soiled. At least, that was what he read from the instructive manual Mao had given him. Unfortunately, doing so was proving to be much harder than what Sousuke anticipated. Baby Moesuke had an amazing talent for evading and speedily crawling away whenever Sousuke tried to wipe his bottom with a disinfectant cloth. Sousuke could only imagine the horrors of attempting to actually put the "diaper" garment onto the subject.

Sousuke looked distantly through the window at the clear blue sky. The end of the week seemed so far away.

* * *

**Yesterday at 11 P.M.**

There were no specific missions that Sousuke was on. School was out, and the job of protecting Chidori was taken over by Kurz and Yang, as well as several others. Sousuke initially tried to be put on duty for protecting her, but Kalinin insisted that this time, Sousuke take some time off. It might have had something to do with Mao reporting that he had fainted several times from lack of sleep during a previous mission. That mission had also involved the Captain, who for some reason decided to crawl to his bed in the middle of the night and... do _what _Sousuke didn't know. All he knew was that he couldn't get a wink of sleep ever since he first woke up (after feeling that someone was breathing on him) and saw her face inches away from his. His instincts told him to punch and mace the culprit, but he quickly (and thankfully) realized that it was his Captain. Nonetheless, the encounter had terrified him, and sleeping did not come easy after that.

Sousuke felt uneasy about not being on the duty of protecting Kaname Chidori. He was also not used to the feeling of not having any mission or duty to fulfill. In some ways, he felt very empty.

Sousuke sat down on his bed and quietly proceeded to assemble the new MP5 submachine gun he bought. It had been a long time since he had this sort of peace and quiet to leisurely assemble and disassemble his weaponry. Maybe he could get used to this calm, peaceful feeling?

This thought was interrupted by a loud knocking on his apartment door, as well as a muffled voice calling for him to open the door. Sousuke made his way to the door cautiously, and looked through the peephole. To his surprise, the person paying the visit was Second Lieutenant Melissa Mao. She looked irritable and impatient, and started to raise her voice for Sousuke to open the door. It was a horrible feeling whenever someone's actions would draw attention to him, and Mao's loud voice had a way of piquing the curiosity of passerby. Sousuke quickly opened the door and let her in.

Before Sousuke could open his mouth to ask her what this visit was all about, Mao held up what she had been holding in her hands in front of him.

The thing stared at Sousuke.

"Ma ma," it said.

"What is that?" Sousuke asked after a moment of silence.

"A terrorist, Sousuke. Can't you tell? Damn, have you really been living under a rock all these years? It's a baby."

Another pause.

"Wait... don't tell me you actually believed me when I said it was a terrorist?" Mao looked like she was on the verge of laughing uncontrollably.

"No, that's not what I thought. I was wondering why you would bring that to my apartment," Sousuke replied in a clipped manner. In reality, he actually _did_ feel his heart jump when Mao told him it was a terrorist. But he would rather not admit that, as he was well aware that Mao was a rather petty person when it came to flaunting the fact that she was right.

"Anyways Sousuke, I'm in a tight situation here. You have to help me out. You see - I have a cousin whose husband works in Mithril. We've never been all that close, and to put things bluntly, she's a pain in the ass. A total selfish, whiny bitch - definitely got it from my old man's side. Apparently, she got into a fight with her husband and decided to run away to spite him. Being the drama queen she is, she decided to involve their kid in her petty "revenge" - so wouldn't you know that it's just my luck that she decided to leave him outside of my living quarters. And, well, to get more to the point - she dumped her kid on me. The problem is that her husband left to go on a mission the same day she did this, so I can't even give the kid to him. And right now, with all the reports I have to write up and the problems we've been having with that terrorist group in Sudan, I just don't have time. In fact, I'm on my way right now to a briefing. Sousuke, I swear, it'll only be one week."

All the words of complaint and desperation came flooding out of Mao, and Sousuke had a hard time following.

"What I mean to say is - Sousuke, I want you to take care of this kid while I'm gone. His name is Baby Moesuke - at least, that's what his mother calls him. And I won't take no for an answer."

Sousuke didn't know what to think. Or perhaps a more accurate way of putting it would be that he didn't have_ time _to think. Seizing on his hesitation, Mao quickly transferred a plastic bag into Sousuke's hand. She cheerfully explained that the bag contained supplies (including a how-to manual for taking care of a baby) which she picked up on her way to the apartment, and they were to be used for taking care of the baby. She then transferred Baby Moesuke into Sousuke's arms. Clapping her hands together and sheepishly thanking Sousuke for his trouble, the Second Lieutenant made her way out of his apartment, leaving a completely baffled Sousuke.

Sousuke looked down, and his eyes met with the baby he was awkwardly holding.

"Mama!" Came the reply from a very happy baby.

Sousuke looked away, flustered. He was unsure of how to respond. He had never been taught the protocol of how to properly address a baby, or even how he should expect the baby to address _him_. He got the feeling that it wasn't supposed to be "Mama."

"Listen Baby Moesuke, from now until the end of this week, you have been placed under my watch. Here and for this duration, you are to address me as Sergeant. Am I understood?"

"Mama!" came the reply from the very happy baby.

It looked to be rather hopeless. The subject was not listening to him at all.

Of course, it only took a moment for Sousuke to realize that proper naming protocol was not the most important issue at the moment. A horrible stench assailed Sousuke's nostrils. This stench was reminiscent of Soman nerve gas. _Shit. At a time like this?_ Holding the subject close to him, Sousuke threw himself to the ground and rolled. He quickly made his way to the bedroom, and hid under the bed. Several minutes passed with no movement. And why was it that under the bed the smell was far more concentrated?

Baby Moesuke seemed to be finding the situation very amusing. He giggled a lot, which made Sousuke want to hit him for constantly threatening their cover.

Several more minutes passed. Was Sousuke wrong? He cautiously made his way out from under the bed. _Odd, the smell is actually less concentrated out here._ It was after Sousuke looked down and inspected the baby in his arms that he realized his apartment had not been under attack. It also became clear to Sousuke that the subject was not, in fact, wearing brown pants. Perhaps this explained why Mao was holding the subject by the waist, instead of from the bottom the way Sousuke was.

Sousuke never had to deal with someone who defecated without care. He decided that the best course of action before doing anything would be to refer to the special manual Mao left behind. After all, it would be unwise to dive into action without any knowledge. Taking precautions like this are what determine the difference between life and death on the battlefield. Unfortunately, the manual was quite thick, and it took Sousuke five hours to go through the entire thing. It was also far more confusing than any textbook he had read during his time at Jindai High. By the time he finished it, Baby Moesuke started to cry, and was crawling around the apartment. Huge, lumpy trails of brown followed his path.

Worst of all, Baby Moesuke was now in such a crabby mood that it would take Sousuke another two hours of effort to clean him up and put the special "diaper" garment on.

It was going to be a long week for Sousuke.


	2. Awakening the Soldier Spirit

_AN: Alright, chapter 2 is here! So there are some slashy thoughts from Gauron towards Sousuke. Again, if you don't like slash, there's a high chance you won't like this chapter! _(_And thanks so much again to ubikono for helping me with funny scenario ideas :D!)_

Sousuke never thought of having breakfast as a difficult task. He would follow the simple steps of opening an M.R.E. and heating it with the flameless ration heater. When he was in a hurry, he would sometimes sustain himself with a HOOAH! Bar.

Today was different, though. He had the added responsibility of feeding the subject of his mission, Baby Moesuke. Unfortunately, Baby Moesuke was completely unwilling to consume the special bottled "baby food" provided by Mao. Sousuke could not fathom why Baby Moesuke would be so unwilling to eat. The subject did not appear to suffer the typical trauma found in the people Sousuke was ordered to protect in the past. During previous missions, if the subject was unwilling to eat when told to, Sousuke would normally force feed them (and if the situation was especially desperate, proper course of action normally involved jamming food down their throat). It was generally unpleasant, but it worked nonetheless. This was apparently not an option, because the manual Sousuke had been referencing made specific mention that "feeding a baby by force" was not a good idea.

_Are these rations really that bad?_ Sousuke pondered. He would understand Baby Moesuke's reluctance if the food provided tasted anything like Kalinin's Borscht.

Sousuke spooned some of the gooey substance out from one of the bottles and braced himself. After tasting it, he became even more confused. The ration tasted nothing like the Lieutenant Commander's signature dish, and was actually very pleasant. In fact, Sousuke was surprised at how delicious and nutritious it was. If packaged properly, it would not be a stretch to say that this food would be the perfect sustenance for a soldier. Perhaps he might suggest that Mithril look into it after the week is over.

Feeling his own hunger now, Sousuke decided to have another spoon of the rations provided. And another. It was by the fifth spoonful that Baby Moesuke started whining and grabbing at the bottled rations.

"You wish to eat now? So you finally realize how unwise it is to refuse nutrition when provided to you. Very well, since it is part of my mission to ensure that you don't die of starvation," Sousuke said as he spooned food for the now very eager Baby Moesuke. "Having the energy provided by these soldier rations changes whether you die like a dog or continue surviving. What if someone threw a grenade at you? If you lack the energy to run, you will be blown to bloody bits and no one will cry for someone who was so foolish."

Baby Moesuke was now listening intently as "Ma ma" was feeding him. He seemed to nod at the wisdom Sousuke was providing, and the meal went quite smoothly. Both Sousuke and Baby Moesuke had a a peaceful, nutritionally filling breakfast of "baby food."

Once Baby Moesuke was properly fed and his bottom again cleaned, Sousuke decided that it would be a good time to continue assembling his MP5 submachine gun. Sitting on his bed to work, Sousuke had Baby Moesuke preoccupy himself with playing with his Bonta-kun stuffed animal (courtesy of Mao) and an unloaded pistol that Sousuke had given him. Getting used to the feel of different guns in one's hands was an important thing to do at a young age. When this child grows a bit older, it would be highly recommended that the father let him feel the difference in weight between a loaded and unloaded gun. But for right now, this would be the first and simplest step of training.

Both of them sat next to each other, engrossed in working on the object at hand. Every now and then, Sousuke would quietly explain the steps he went through for assembling the submachine gun to Baby Moesuke. Despite Baby Moesuke's lack of vocabulary, he would respond appropriately to Sousuke, having the correct tone of "Ma ma" as a response. They seemed to be carrying out a bizarre sort of conversation. To anyone else, it would probably look like they were speaking in a completely different language.

Sousuke finished his project right around the time that Baby Moesuke started getting restless. Baby Moesuke was now crawling around grabbing at Sousuke, and would occasionally try to execute a forward roll (at least that's what it looked like to Sousuke) unsuccessfully.

"That's not how you do it," Sousuke told Baby Moesuke, after an attempt that resulted in Baby Moesuke ramming headfirst into Sousuke's leg. He did not know what the subject's superiors had been doing all this time, if the child couldn't even execute a proper forward roll. Getting up from the bed, Sousuke decided to demonstrate the proper way to do it.

"You do it like this." Sousuke calmly demonstrated. Baby Moesuke's eyes widened, and he seemed very impressed. He cheered with excitement, and the way he said "Ma ma" probably meant something along the lines of "again!" Sousuke complied, giving Baby Moesuke step by step instructions. When it came to Baby Moesuke's turn, however, he still ended up gracelessly flopping over. Tears welled up in the baby's eyes, and he seemed very frustrated. He started crying and grabbing onto Ma ma.

"Stop it!" Sousuke commanded harshly. A sudden silence followed.

Taking a deep breath, Sousuke picked up Baby Moesuke. "Crying is a sign of weakness. Doing so will only make you an eyesore. A true soldier must never cry over such a trivial thing. If you are disappointed with your current level of ability, then practice and learn. Persistence in the face of hardship and death is the only way you will grow to be a real man." Harsh as it may seem, this was Sousuke's way of comforting those that are down. In Baby Moesuke's case, these words were apparently all that were needed. His eyes were burning with determination, wishing to be a "real man" that his Ma ma was talking about. He continued to practice, and Sousuke could see the slightest of improvement (or perhaps that one roll was a fluke?). But the greatest improvement of all to Sousuke was Baby Moesuke's renewed "soldier spirit."

* * *

**In a hotel in Sudan**

After a long day at work, Gauron was feeling a bit frustrated. Also, bored. He had purposefully taken up a job in Sudan because they told him it meant going up against Mithril. That meant he would see his darling Kashim. Or that was what he thought. So far, he hadn't heard so much as a peep from Kashim. The entire thing made him so fucking pissed off. Sure, the job was very well paying - but money wasn't the reason why Gauron took them up on their offer. Perhaps his employers _thought_ that that was the reason; the fools couldn't understand why else he would take the risk of the job if Mithril was involved. But his reason was not such - it was his desire to see Kashim again.

After interrogating some captured Mithril soldiers, it finally came out. URUZ-7, or whatever the hell Kashim was calling himself now, was not sent out with them on this mission. That old bastard Kalinin decided to keep Kashim safely away somewhere else. He was denying Gauron the pleasure of fulfilling his destined meeting with Kashim. In a fit of rage, Gauron messily killed the soldiers. He knew his employers were annoyed with him about that, but he didn't care. For Gauron, the job suddenly lost most of its appeal.

His whole day - no, his whole week was now ruined. He decided that after today, he would quit this distasteful side job. In terms of money, he had more than enough of it. He would rather not waste precious time away from Kashim if he could help it. Screwing Yu Lan wasn't helping his mood much, either. It helped a bit with the tension, but that was it.

Yu Lan was crying out passionately. She only got that way when Gauron did her. "I love you Sensei!" she would gasp. Love. What a joke. Or perhaps she really did. Gauron never cared enough to try and find out the distinction of whether Yu Lan "loved" him, or whether it was just lust. Either way, he ensured loyalty from her by doing her and making her think it was was love. Gauron was sure about one thing, though: what he felt for Kashim was love. Love of the purest form. He would feel as passionately for Kashim when the boy is alive as when the boy is dead. Granted, Kashim didn't seem to be very touched when he told him that... but perhaps Gauron wasn't expressing himself properly at the moment.

Indeed, Kashim was an addiction for Gauron. Ever since he first saw the boy in Afghanistan, he couldn't stop thinking about him. Whenever Gauron would screw anyone, he would imagine he was doing it to Kashim. He wished right now that the person he was doing was Kashim.

A cry of ecstasy came from Yu Lan, signaling that she climaxed. It was at this moment that Yu Fan came in. "Pardon my intrusion, Sensei. It's about Kashim - I received information on his location, and what he is up to. If now is not a good time, I can - "

"No, now is fine. Where is he?" Gauron interrupted, his heart beating like crazy at the mention of the boy. Yu Fan was slightly taken aback by how eager Gauron was, if not a bit sad that her Sensei cared so much for Kashim compared to both sisters. But she continued.

"He is currently staying inside his apartment in Japan. His commanding officer - a woman named Mao - stopped by his apartment briefly, but aside from that, Kashim has had no contact with anyone else. He has not left the apartment these past few days, although... loud screams can be heard from inside his apartment every now and then."

"Continue keeping a close watch on him. Report to me if he does anything different." If Kashim was simply staying put in his apartment, that would make things much easier on Gauron. It would give Gauron enough time to finish matters that needed to be dealt with here. And once things have been tidied up, Gauron would pay Kashim a visit. Gauron could hardly wait - he felt giddy. He wanted to see Kashim. Fantasizing about how their meeting might go, Gauron climaxed.

_Kashim, I know that you're miserable, locked up by those weaklings inside that stupid civilian apartment. We're two of a kind - the only ones left in this weak, useless world. You are at your most beautiful when you're free and in battle, killing those who oppose you. Wait for me, Honey._


	3. An Empty Farewell

_AN: Finally got Chapter 3 out now! No slash for this chapter - only some man-to-man bonding between two soldier spirits :D. (And I must again thank the Ubikono for inspiring many awesome ideas for this story!)_

Ever since Ma ma taught Baby Moesuke how to execute a forward roll, Baby Moesuke made a special effort to practice it every day. He was determined to show Ma ma that he could be a good soldier. He was becoming better at it, too - he knew it because Ma ma told him so. Baby Moesuke cared a lot about how Ma ma thought about him. When Ma ma praised him (which seemed to involve something about how much energy he had and how that makes a good soldier), he would beam with pride. Ma ma was very soft and pretty. She was also very amazing - she could do so many things, and was very wise. Completely different from the "Ma ma" that left him in that cold dark place before. That one was the "Fake Ma ma." Baby Moesuke knew now that this one was the real one.

When Baby Moesuke wasn't practicing the roll, he would crawl over to Ma ma and start cuddling, in the hopes that Ma ma would pamper him and tell him stories. More often than not, though, Ma ma would look a bit nervous and inspect his bottom. Right now it was bed time, and more than anything else, Baby Moesuke wished that Ma ma would tell him a bedtime story in the pleasant, clear voice she had. Baby Moesuke tried to make the request.

"Ma ma! Ma ma!" He tugged at her clothes.

Unfortunately, it didn't look like Ma ma understood him this time. Ma ma picked him up and brought him over to the bedroom.

"A soldier needs sufficient rest in order to properly perform his duty. It is a lucky, rare time when you can get uninterrupted sleep - most raids happen at night while you're unguarded, so appreciate any rest you can get for tonight. And stay on your guard." At this, Ma ma seemed to shudder, muttering something about being thankful the Captain wasn't here either.

Ma ma turned off the lights and crawled under the bed with Baby Moesuke in tow. Baby Moesuke thought it was fun that Ma ma would bring him under the bed when it was time to sleep. It was a refreshing change from always being in a caged bed.

A loud noise startled Baby Moesuke. Ma ma froze briefly, but relaxed after a moment.

The loud noises persisted, and Baby Moesuke was scared. He tightly gripped his Bonta-kun stuffed animal in one hand, and Ma ma's shirt in the other, whimpering.

"It is not a raid. There is no cause for fear - it's only thunder." Ma ma's words failed to comfort Baby Moesuke, who continued to shiver.

Ma ma hesitated. After a moment, she held Baby Moesuke closer to her.

"Thunder is no reason to lose your composure - especially not when we're in shelter. If we were outside and the circumstances were different, it would be a cause for worry. But like this..."

A long silence followed, and Ma ma seemed to be in deep thought.

"There are many things far scarier than thunder. At least with lightning, you would probably die a quick death. Your enemies can be far less merciful. In Afghanistan, I heard that several of my comrades had less than merciful endings at the hands of the enemy. It was always something that we feared. Dying an unfitting death for a soldier. The sound we feared most was not caused by weather - it was caused by humans. Gunfire, explosives detonating... these were the sounds that would worry us."

Ma ma looked down at Baby Moesuke. If Baby Moesuke wasn't mistaken, Ma ma's expression softened just a little.

"There were some false alarms though. I remember the time that Khalili got wounded by the enemy, and he was on painkillers. The weather was much like today's, and there were thunderstorms. He would keep mistaking the thunder for gunfire, and he would call us idiots for not listening to his warnings. Muhammad eventually had to knock him out because he was too much of a distraction. Khalili wasn't a very forgiving person, so everyone lied to him later and told him he fainted."

The sound of Ma ma's heartbeat was even. Although Baby Moesuke didn't quite understand everything Ma ma was saying, some part of him understood that Ma ma was trying, in her own way, to comfort him. It was her way of letting him know that he was safe, and that the thing causing the scary noise was not something to worry about. Baby Moesuke was grateful that Ma ma was telling him a story - it somehow drowned out the scary noise, and made him feel at peace.

Squeezing his Bonta-kun stuffed animal, Baby Moesuke gradually fell asleep as Ma ma told him pleasant stories.

* * *

The end of the week had finally arrived, and Sousuke was feeling very relieved. The supplies that Mao had given him were running dangerously low. If it were any later, he would have had to find some way of restocking the supplies.

Oddly enough, along with the feeling of relief, Sousuke felt a bit empty at the thought that the week was finally over. He would return the subject back to Mao safe and sound, and things would continue much the same way as in the past. The mission would be a success. So why was he feeling so empty?

Sousuke glanced up at Baby Moesuke. The subject had somewhat mastered the forward roll, and was now interspersing it with awkward attempts at CQC. Sousuke did his part in training the subject in survival techniques. In fact, Sousuke had gone beyond his duty and imparted much more wisdom than was to be expected. But from today onward, Baby Moesuke's training would be in the hands of other people. Before they would part, however, there was still one more thing that Sousuke wished to teach the subject.

Sousuke walked over to the subject and crouched down to talk to him. "Baby Moesuke, today is the last day you will be in my care."

"Ma ma?" Baby Moesuke was now all ears. He seemed to be able to tell that what Sousuke was talking to him about was serious.

"Although our time together was somewhat brief, your growth as a soldier has been substantial. From today on, you must listen to your commanding officer and continue on your path. Between now and the time Mao comes to pick you up, there is not much more I can teach you. However -" At this, Sousuke lifted his arm to a salute. "It is my wish that from now on, you will properly salute people - the way a capable soldier would."

The atmosphere was very emotional, and Baby Moesuke seemed to be holding back tears. He slowly raised his small arm up into a salute, while uttering a heartfelt "Ma ma."

And then the phone rang.

Sousuke got up and answered it, and was surprised to hear Mao's voice on the line.

"Sousuke, how are you doing? Is Baby Moesuke alright? Have things been going okay over there?"

Before Sousuke could answer, Mao continued on. "Look, I know that you're probably waiting for me to come by and pick Baby Moesuke up. Sousuke, I'm not sure how to put this, but... things have been a bit rough in Sudan, and I have almost no time right now. I'm afraid I can't come and take Baby Moesuke today. In fact, it'll be another week before I'll be able to. I'm really sorry for doing this to you, but I'm counting on you to take care of the little brat. It'll only be one more week, I promise. Thanks a ton for doing this, Sousuke. I mean it."

The sound of a click was followed by a dial tone.

Sousuke stood holding the phone for a while, mind gone blank. Another week. No, there was no use thinking about it. Sousuke had no choice. What use was there in thinking about it?

Sousuke turned wearily to Baby Moesuke.

Baby Moesuke saluted and happily called out to "Ma ma." It was amazing how aware Baby Moesuke seemed to be of what was going on. He already knew from Ma ma's reaction that Sousuke was not going to be leaving quite yet.

In his moment of happiness, Baby Moesuke also appeared to have lost control of his bodily functions yet again. Sousuke picked Baby Moesuke up and went to change his diaper.

But, at the very least, one thing was for certain: Sousuke was not feeling _empty_ at the moment.


	4. This is War

_AN: Slashy thoughts from Gauron in the chapter again - so I shall post the warning once again XD! __If you don't like slash, there's a high chance you won't like the last part of this chapter! (Thanks so much Ubikono for the wonderful inspiration! I have the table flipping scene here - ohohoho!)  
_

Because Mao had changed the plan of action for his current mission, Sousuke was now faced with a new dilemma. The supply of special "Baby" rations had run out. Sousuke reluctantly realized that it was now his responsibility to go outside and attempt to find a supplier of this item. In the process of doing so, he would also have to bring Baby Moesuke along, since the subject would not be safe from terrorists without his protection. The whole idea of this did not appeal to him. It would be a risky move, since it would put him _and_ his subject at a risk of sniper attacks. But it had to be done. It was part of the special manual's requirements that a baby must be fed this food properly every day.

Sousuke braced himself, preparing his weaponry. He donned a ballistic vest underneath his shirt, and checked to make sure his automatic pistol was loaded properly. To be on the safe side, he armed himself with an M203 grenade launcher (which he hid in the pack he was bringing with him). Unfortunately, wearing appropriate head covering might be too conspicuous. Sousuke decided he would have to take the chance of braving a headshot.

Sousuke now turned his attention to Baby Moesuke. Although doubtful that the subject would be capable of handling the heavier artillery, Sousuke decided that it would be best if the subject was armed with at least a deterrent of some sort. Sousuke went to the mace cupboard and retrieved a can.

"Baby Moesuke, we will be going on a very dangerous mission soon. It is imperative that we stick together and are properly prepared for this. Here, take this can of mace. If you are faced with an enemy, press this and spray them in the face with it."

Baby Moesuke took the mace and held it with care. He listened carefully to Sousuke's instructions, and apparently understood the graveness of the situation.

This was war.

* * *

Sousuke walked carefully around the city, searching desperately for a special "Baby Food" store. He held Baby Moesuke in one arm, and kept his other hand on his automatic pistol, which he had hidden inside his pocket. As soon as he set foot outside of his apartment, he felt a horrible feeling of uneasiness. This stressful, tingling feeling got progressively worse the longer he explored the city. His instincts told him that someone was watching them from afar, and this realization was killing him.

Every now and then, Sousuke would abruptly stop and turn towards the general area he felt the watchful presence was coming from. And every time, the watchful presence seemed to dissipate. Whoever was following them was a pro, for sure. And this pro had fast reflexes, making it very difficult to pinpoint exactly where they are. The only thing keeping Sousuke from completely panicking was the fact that Sousuke sensed no blood lust or "killing spirit" in the air. He could feel it - whoever was tailing them was not harboring any desire to harm or kill them. Their main purpose seemed to be that of simply observing. Nevertheless, Sousuke _knew_ that this mission was not going to be easy.

It also seemed to be impossible to find a "Baby Food" supplier without asking someone. There were no stores that seemed to specialize in carrying the supplies needed, and Sousuke had no wish to continue remaining in broad daylight at the mercy of the enemy. He stopped in front of two female civilians who were sitting on a bench, and proceeded to ask them where he might find the special ration.

As soon as Sousuke approached them, both girls seemed to tense, and eyed him in an odd way. They also seemed to turn a shade of red.

"Baby food? You can probably buy it at any grocery store. Just go to the "Baby" section and it should be there."

"You have my thanks." Sousuke replied curtly.

When he started to walk away, the other girl called out.

"Is that your baby brother? He's so cute! That's sweet of you to take care of him. Hey, you want us to go with you to find the baby food?"

Both girls giggled nervously at this.

"No, he is not. And it is... my duty to do so," Sousuke answered awkwardly. "The offer is appreciated."

"Your - your duty?" Both of the girls seemed horrified at this.

As Sousuke walked away, he could hear the girls mentioning something about how all the "lookers" were taken, and that it's shocking how young fathers can be. None of this made sense to him, and he quickly refocused his mind on the task ahead.

The grocery store was crowded, and Sousuke was having a hard time finding the "Baby" section. It was infuriating how hard this task was. As Sousuke passed an aisle containing toys, he felt Baby Moesuke suddenly start to struggle.

"Ma Ma! Ma Ma!" Baby Moesuke cried out, as he pointed to a toy pistol hanging from a rack they passed.

"Please, keep quiet Baby Moesuke. We're almost there," Sousuke whispered.

After walking to the far end of the store, Sousuke realized that they had finally reached the "Baby" section, which contained several jars of rations. Sousuke set Baby Moesuke down and got to work on stocking up on the baby food. Unfortunately, he was now faced with a new dilemma: there were so many different kinds of jars. Which was the correct kind? Was the proper kind "Krazy Krunchy Karrot"? Was it "Mushy Wushy Peas"? Many of these sounded highly untrustworthy, and any wrong move on his part might spell doom for his subject. No, Sousuke had to be cautious. This was a delicate task - much like when he chooses which color wire he must cut when defusing a bomb. Sousuke was sweating bullets now.

Going through them, Sousuke finally recognized and picked out the correct ones. They were the exact same as the ones Mao had provided him, and Sousuke felt accomplished for managing to pass the test and choose wisely. So focused was he on the task at hand, it was only after he finished and turned around that he realized Baby Moesuke was gone.

* * *

Baby Moesuke wriggled and crawled his way through the crowds of towering people, slowly getting to the place where he saw the pretty, orange weapon. He felt sure that he would be able to protect Ma Ma from bad people if he were to get his hands on that. Ma Ma told him that things were dangerous and serious now, and what Ma Ma gave him might not be enough. Baby Moesuke needed that special weapon Ma Ma called a "gun."

Unfortunately, when Baby Moesuke got to it, he found himself too short to reach it. Pathetic. Baby Moesuke felt so useless. He found tears welling up in his eyes, and he had a hard time suppressing them. He started to whimper.

"Hey, who left their baby here? The kid is crying, too." A fat, middle age man approached Baby Moesuke. "Parents like that should be sued. Horrible."

The man knelt next to Baby Moesuke, telling him something about how he'll take him to the front desk. At that, the man reached out to grab Baby Moesuke.

"Ma Ma! MA MA!" Baby Moesuke cried out, finding himself increasingly frightened by this man.

The man yelped as he was punched in the face. Once he fell over onto the ground, he was held down in an armlock.

"Don't move a muscle, or your brains will be splattered across the floor."

It was Ma Ma! Ma Ma had come to save him from the scary man. She looked very intense as she held her gun to the man's head, and Baby Moesuke thought she looked so cool.

The man was scared stiff.

"Who are you? Why did you punch me? My god, that's not real, is it? Th- That's not even legal!" he stammered.

Ma Ma dug her gun harder into the man's head.

"Shut up. So you were targeting him. Who sent you? What do you want with him?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, you psycho! And if you don't let go now, I - I'll sue you!" The man was all but shrieking now.

Ma Ma observed the man for a bit, then let him go. As soon as she let go, the man made a dart for the exit, and ran far faster than Baby Moesuke imagined he could.

Ma Ma looked angry. Very angry.

"If you want to make it out of this alive, didn't I say that we had to stay together? You were lucky that that man was a small fry - someone ignorant to our enemy's master plan. Don't go with strange old men that want to take you anywhere! Even if they offer you things like ammunition or food supplies - Got that?" Baby Moesuke noticed that by Ma Ma's tone, she seemed to be referring to a particular person in that last sentence. Whoever it was that Ma Ma was referring to, Ma Ma seemed to feel disgusted talking about them. Or perhaps it was Baby Moesuke over thinking.

After the encounter, Baby Moesuke realized how important it was that he should stay by Ma Ma's side. What use was going off to search for weapons if he wasn't even with Ma Ma? With them split up, it would be easier for the bad people to hurt either of them. Baby Moesuke realized this only after that scary situation had passed. It had served as a warning, and Baby Moesuke was ashamed he had caused Ma Ma such grief by not thinking like a rational soldier.

They were now lined up at the cash register, and Ma Ma was holding Baby Moesuke over her shoulder. Baby Moesuke noticed a middle age woman eyeing his Ma Ma strangely. She kept staring at Ma Ma. Baby Moesuke didn't like it. Perhaps part of it was his possessiveness of his beautiful Ma Ma, or perhaps part of it was his renewed paranoia of strange people. But Baby Moesuke found himself increasingly suspicious of this woman. These feelings reached a boiling point when Baby Moesuke noticed her secretly peering at Ma Ma from behind a magazine she was "reading." Baby Moesuke took out his mace (which he had skillfully hid inside his diaper) and sprayed her with it when she got too close to Ma Ma.

The shriek was loud, but Baby Moesuke felt she had deserved it.

"WHAT THE - OW, GOD, What did that brat just spray me with? My eyes - they sting! I'M BLIND!"

At this, Ma Ma turned around.

"Dammit - your baby - he sprayed me with some poison! What are you going to do about it? I'm taking you to the police - I swear!"

"Ah - it's just mace. It should stop stinging after half an hour to two hours." Ma Ma replied calmly.

"JUST MACE? What the hell is wrong with you? I demand compensation! I demand - "

At this, Ma Ma replied in a soft spoken voice, "I apologize. The subject in my care - I mean, my baby - he is not clear on how to properly treat a - errr... a beautiful lady. Can you forgive this?"

The woman seemed less angry after Ma Ma said that, surprisingly.

"W-well, I suppose it's a common mistake..." she said, eyes twitching in pain, but obviously mesmerized by Ma Ma's voice. It made Baby Moesuke disgusted. Yes, this woman definitely deserved it.

She was still staring (sort of - as she had bouts of pain from the mace every second or so) admiringly at Ma Ma as they left the store.

Ma Ma let out a deep breath once they were outside the store. "For once, Kurz was actually right. When you add that word to any sentence when talking with an angry female, she becomes less hostile. I was reluctant to believe it since it never seemed to work for him, but..."

She now looked more serious, and looked Baby Moesuke in the eye.

"Baby Moesuke... it's good to be alert and cautious. However, I'm not certain that the person just now was a terrorist. Next time, it would be wiser not to alert your enemies by macing them. It's best to keep them ignorant that you have hostile intentions toward them. Never lick your lips in front of your prey. Only amateurs do that. If you're going to strike, go all the way. And if there is no reason to strike, don't do it at all."

Ma Ma's face relaxed, and her lips turned ever so slightly up. That was the closest thing Baby Moesuke had seen Ma Ma come to smiling. "However, your technique of macing is quite impressive. Very stealthy and quick. Not the work of an amateur. I hardly felt it when you did it. You're becoming a more and more capable soldier."

And that comment from Ma Ma was enough to make Baby Moesuke feel better about everything.

* * *

Gauron was having a tasty meal in his hotel room. The hotel was certainly a luxury resort. They provided the finest and most expensive of meals right to the room, and they certainly had exquisite wine. But what made this meal especially good to Gauron was not how expensive or classy it was. It could have just as easily been a hotdog from a street vendor, instead of the insanely expensive steak.

What made this meal so special was that it was flavored with the taste of anticipation. He had tied up loose ends (and eliminated a few idiots) with his job, and he was going to go see his honey the day after tomorrow. He felt like he was on cloud nine.

There was a knock on his room door.

"Yu Lan, you should know by now that there's no need to knock on the door."

Yu Lan opened the door and came in. "Pardon me, Sensei - my sister has sent back a report on Kashim."

"Well now, what is that precious boy of mine up to?" Gauron grinned and seemed to look far away, almost dreamily.

"Kashim has finally left the apartment. He was looking for a particular place. He seemed to be aware that sister was following him, but... sister is certain that he didn't see her or know who or where exactly she was."

Gauron found this amusing. "Hmm hmmm... Kashim is alert as ever, isn't he? It's nice that he never lets his guard down or allows his skills to get rusty. It makes all of this so much more fun."

"Kashim went to a grocery store. He assaulted a man there, and interrogated him. He was apparently provoked to do so after the man tried to take his baby away. He then had a woman behind him assaulted with mace. He left the store after he purchased thirty jars of baby food. On the way back to his apartment, he beat up five men because they looked suspicious, and used a grenade launcher to destroy a tree. My sister says he did so because he thought she was hiding behind it. She was actually hiding behind a different tree nearby."

Gauron chuckled. This was even more amusing to him. "Oooh, Kashim, Kashim, Kashim. You never fail to amuse. There really is no one else like you. That's just like him to leave beautiful destruction in his wake. And shitty people over there just don't appreciate beauty when they see it. Heh heh... so he assaulted a man when the fool tried to take his - "

There was a beat. Gauron turned to look at Yu Lan.

"Yu Lan. Tell me - did you just say his baby?"

Although she didn't outwardly show it, Yu Lan was wincing on the inside. She braced herself.

"Yes, Sensei. Kashim's baby. He... he said so himself."

Gauron looked blank as he digested this information. It was rare for Yu Lan to see her Sensei look _blank_, and it scared her.

And then he started to laugh. The laugh went from a light chuckle to full blown maniacal laughter.

"So Kashim finally did it! That beautiful saint finally went with some shitty bimbo and had a little baby together. Isn't that sweet. How nice of him to finally settle down and have a warm, beautiful little family. It brings tears to my eyes."

There was a loud, explosive noise that resounded inside the room. Gauron had hit the table. Hard. Plates clattered, and the fine wine spilled across the table, leaving blood-like stains on the tablecloth.

"TO HELL WITH THIS! THAT WHORE! HE'S A LITTLE WHORE! HOW COULD HE DO THIS? HOW COULD HE DO THIS TO ME? HOW COULD HE DO THIS TO _US_?" Gauron roared.

He proceeded to flip the table over, the pricey meal spilling onto the floor.

And with the destruction of the table, it became very obvious that his good humor was gone.

"Kashim, you _know_ I won't allow this. This special tie we have between us... it won't just go away if you go and have some shitty sweet little family. I won't let you. None of them know you like I do. You're a killer. You're not some boring, ordinary citizen that has children with a stupid, ignorant woman and tries to settle down. Shit - dammit! Kashim, I won't forgive you for this. I'll kill her. So you'll never think of betraying me like this again. And that little baby of yours, too. I'll make it so you have no one but me. No - ever since the beginning, you've had no one but me. You just never wanted to believe it."

Gauron was ranting now. And Yu Lan felt unnerved. Although Sensei was well known for his violent outbursts when people cross him, it was rarely as passionate or filled with rage as this time. Kashim has power over Sensei. This fact was more pronounced than ever to Yu Lan.

"Sensei... perhaps the child is not his? It is possible that - "

Gauron's voice was now dripping with sarcasm. "Yes, because Kashim has now decided to become a good samaritan and do wonderful community work like babysitting cute little kids. No, Kashim wouldn't do that. He's a killer - a mercenary. A warrior. He has no time for taking care of some random fucking kid. I know him - right now, he was probably led astray by some bitch. Thinks he's going to be a normal man or something. He can't manage it though. I'll have to teach him that."

Yu Lan realized that what Sensei was saying was true. It was highly unlikely that the child would not be Kashim's. There would be no reason for him to do such a thing.

Gauron was every bit as angry as before, although less violent now. Dark sentiments were burning in his eyes, and after a long while, he spoke.

"Yu Lan. I'm going to him. Tonight."

"Yes, Sensei. I shall make arrangements now." Yu Lan replied calmly, although Gauron's sudden resolve surprised her.

As she left the room and closed the door, Yu Lan heard her Sensei mutter darkly -

"You're mine, Kashim. I won't allow it."


End file.
